Motorola patents flexible mobile phone

USER INTERFACE SYSTEM

Abstract
A user interface system (102) for a portable electronic device (100) is disclosed. The user interface system includes an interface (202) that is made of a flexible material and has an active position and an inactive position. The interface is coupled with a reservoir (204). The reservoir is used for storing electrorheological fluid (206). The user interface system also includes a source (208) that is coupled to the reservoir. The source is used for applying an electric field to the electrorheological fluid when the interface is in the active position.


Description
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FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001]The invention relates in general to the field of portable electronic devices, and more particularly, to a user interface system for a portable electronic device.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002]Nowadays, electronic devices, for example, a mobile telephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a laptop computer and/or a smart telephone, are becoming increasingly popular. An electronic device generally has a user interface system, which facilitates user interaction with the electronic device. The user interface system, such as a keyboard, a keypad and a touch screen, can be used to input data to the electronic device or provide commands to the electronic device. Further, the user interface system, such as a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD), an electronic (E) paper, and a touch screen, can be used to display information. These user interface systems tend to be bulky and inflexible, causing inconvenience in portability and problems in handling.

[0003]Currently, there exist various user interface systems, which are portable to a certain degree. In one such user interface system, various components of the user interface system can be disassembled and assembled whenever required. However, such a user interface system requires manual effort to assemble and disassemble that can be time-consuming and tiresome. Further, the user interface system becomes bulky after being re-assembled. Moreover, this user interface system may not facilitate portability since it might not be convenient for a user to disassemble and assemble the system frequently.

[0004]In view of the foregoing discussion, there exists a need for a user interface system which occupies the minimum amount of workspace and is easy to carry as well.